


Scary Nights of Autumn

by Zetal (Rodinia)



Series: Warning Labels [9]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: John Winchester's A+ Parenting, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-25
Updated: 2016-06-05
Packaged: 2018-06-10 15:08:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,215
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6961996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rodinia/pseuds/Zetal
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cas prepares for college, but upcoming days start both Cas and Sam remembering the past.</p><p>Note: The underage warning is for the series.  Sam is 15, Cas is 17.  Nothing beyond kissing/cuddling is depicted in this story.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. October 28

Cas flopped back on the couch, throwing his left arm over his eyes. “I cannot wait to be done with these stupid applications. Why do they need all this information anyway?”

“No idea,” Sam said sympathetically from where he was proofreading one of Cas’s essays. “Think you finally got this one right, Cas. It’s good. Full of crap, but good.”

“It’s not like I can tell them that the time I’ve been the most scared was watching a cousin point a gun at me and that my response was to attempt to kill him,” Castiel said. “Either they wouldn’t believe it and would write me off as a liar, or they would believe it and would write me off as a thug and a criminal. Yes, I know, I’m both, but that’s all your fault. And I can’t exactly write about being terrified watching a skinchanger try to rip my boyfriend apart, either.”

“True enough,” Sam admitted. The essay was about Cas's first night after running away from Michael, which was a pretty scary night, Sam figured.

“Speaking of scary nights… I’m guessing, the way you were raised, you and Dean aren’t all that big on Halloween?” Castiel said. 

Sam shrugged. “Dean likes the parties. I always thought it’d be fun to dress up, but never really had the chance. Are you a Halloween guy?”

“Me, not really. Gabriel gets really into it, especially handing out candy,” Castiel said.

Sam snickered. “Somehow, that doesn’t surprise me a bit.”

“I like going out and wandering around to see the costumes. Some kids are very creative, or at least, have creative parents,” Castiel said. “But Michael always taught that Halloween was the devil’s night, so I only got to trick-or-treat once. Michael was out of the country and his brother Luc was left in charge. He loves Halloween, so that year, we went all-out. Fake cobwebs all over the yard, a glow-in-the-dark spider, carved jack-o-lanterns, elaborate costumes, everything. Then Uriel told Michael and he and Luc got into a huge fight. Since then, Luc hasn’t spoken to a Godwin who’ll admit it, although I’m pretty sure Luc and Gabriel still keep in touch. Don’t feel sorry for him; other than Halloween, Luc was kind of scary and a real jerk anyway.”

“Still,” Sam said, eyes a bit dewy. “Getting cut off from your family over celebrating a holiday with the kids?”

Castiel shrugged. “I’m pretty sure that was just the spark, not the whole cause of the rift. The fight was way too long for it to be about some candy and costumes and decorations. Anyway... do yo“ want to do something for Halloween? It’s Friday…” 

“Jess is throwing a Halloween party, if you want to do something actually related to Halloween. Sound like Gabriel’s got the candy covered and I can’t imagine Dean won’t find a party to go to himself. Otherwise, see if Dean will let us take the Impala and go stargazing?”

“Check with Jess, make sure I can come,” Cas said. It wasn’t Jess that was the problem. Since Cas’s birthday, Jess had actually become pretty good friends with Cas, and she liked Dean. Jess’s mother, on the other hand, still thought that Sam was living a disgraceful life, that Dean was a terrible guardian and Gabriel was a bad influence on them both. As it turned out, she’d been the one to call Mayra Soliz. Nothing had come of that, which just made Mrs. Moore angrier. “If I can, that sounds like fun, and we can always go stargazing after.”

“Yeah…” Sam trailed off, frowning down at Cas’s essay. Cas waited for Sam to tell him what was wrong, since Sam had already said it wasn’t the essay. “Hey, Cas?”

“Yes, love?”

“Has Dean said anything to you about the 2nd?” Sam said, barely above a whisper.

“No, why? What’s the 2nd?” Michael had made a big deal of All Souls’ Day, but that wasn’t a big thing for most American Catholics, and he couldn't see Sam celebrating the Day of the Dead.

“It’s…” Sam’s voice shook as he explained, “That’s the night Mom died.”

Cas slid off the couch to wrap himself around Sam. “I’m so sorry. Do you guys do something for it?”

“Well… yes and no,” Sam said, voice a little stronger now. “Dad started drinking really early, and didn’t stop, so me and Dean had to look after him and keep him from drinking too fast or not taking breaks to drink some water, too. I usually had to go to bed really early that night. Dean made me go when Dad hit a certain point in the drunkenness. Last year… Dean decided that he was going to keep Dad company. Drink with him. So I had to look after them both, and I couldn’t go to bed. I found out why Dean made me. Dad hit the drunkest I’d ever seen him, and then he started ranting through the weeping. He… he blames me for Mom’s death.”

That was the worst thing Castiel could imagine anyone ever telling a kid. “Sam, you’re not…”

“No, I kind of am,” Sam said. “It’s not my fault or anything like that, but the thing that killed her was in the house to do something to me. When he’s sober, even when he’s just normal drunk, Dad knows that. He doesn’t really believe it. And the next day, when he found out that I’d heard, he was so upset. I haven’t seen him so hurt. He wanted to make it up to me, and a couple days later, he told me his plan: he’d found a city that was safe, had some local hunter presence, and the school seemed decent. And we would get to stay for the entire spring semester. Dean wasn’t thrilled with the idea of staying in one place that long, but he figured he owed me as much as Dad did.”

“Well, as much as I like the result of you staying here, I’m still sorry that’s what it took for it to happen,” Castiel said, kissing Sam’s temple. “Is that why Dean’s so careful about his drinking? He drinks just about every night, but I’ve never actually seen him get drunk.”

“I think so, yeah,” Sam said. “I didn’t ask for that, him being drunk wasn’t really a problem except for leaving me in the position of not being able to go to bed, but I think he feels so guilty about not protecting me that he doesn’t wanna put me in the position of having to take care of him while he’s drunk again.”

“Exactly.” Both boys jumped a little. Neither had heard Dean come in. “I thought it might help Dad slow down a bit if he was sharing the booze, but instead, I just let Sammy hear the last thing he ever should’ve heard. Dad _doesn’t_ believe it, I don’t believe it, you should never have heard it. No booze at all this year, Sam. We’ll call Dad when you and Cas get back from church, before he’s had a chance to get too drunk, and other than that… try to forget what day it is and treat it like any other Sunday?”

“Sounds like a plan,” Sam said, and Cas nodded. “You found a Halloween party to go to?”

“Yeah.” Dean grinned, and he looked ten years younger. “Remember Bela? She’s gonna be home from college for the weekend and when she heard I was in town called me to invite me. I can walk, no problem, if you and Cas want the Impala for something.”

“Thank you,” Castiel said. “We’re not sure yet, but either way we appreciate the offer.”

“Great.” Dean looked at the papers all over the couch, floor, coffee table. “How are those applications coming, Cas?”

Cas groaned and unwrapped himself from Sam to start gathering. “They’re almost at the point of making me fantasize about grabbing you and Sam and the Impala, taking off and driving until we find some place where no one’s ever heard of college. Fortunately I only have two more, and one of those is Stanford – I saved it for last to motivate myself to keep going through the rest. Watch, though. The essays will be completely different, now that Sam says the ones I’ve already done are finally good.”


	2. October 31

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Halloween. It's Friday night. It's a perfect combination for a high school party, right? Well, not so much when the hostess's mom hates you(r boyfriend).

When they got home from soccer practice, Dean was grinning. “Got you two costumes for Jess’s party!”

“Oh no,” Sam said. He’d just figured he’d go as a soccer player and Cas would go as an artist. Simple, cheap, and good for last-second costumes. Dean, on the other hand… Dean would have come up with something utterly ridiculous.

“What did you do, Dean?” Cas asked warily.

“Just go up and look,” Dean said. “She serving dinner or should I throw something together before you leave?”

“There’ll be food there,” Sam said, heading for the stairs with a look of dread. Cas followed him.

On the bed, Sam found two costumes. One was an angel costume that had a note on it reading “CAS”. “Well, he’s not wrong there,” Sam said, enjoying the thought of Cas as an angel. “You ever drawn yourself as an angel?”

“No. I suppose you’re going to tell me I have to, now?” Cas said.

Sam grinned. “Yeah. You can skip drawing me as a tiger, though, Dean is ridiculous.” Sam’s costume was, in fact, a tiger suit. “What’s he even trying to say here?”

Cas shrugged. “That you look good in stripes? I don’t know. I wonder if he got a costume for himself.”

“I doubt it. If he did, it’ll be something easy to get out of.”

 

Jess met them at the door, wearing a bright pink minidress and shoes that made Sam’s feet hurt just looking at them. “Hi, Barbie!” he said.

“Heya, tiger.” Jess gave both boys a quick hug. “Cas, are you trying to advertise something to my mother?”

Cas rolled his eyes. “Dean picked it. It’s quite possible he was thinking along those lines.”

“Is Dean still here?” Jess looked out toward the road. “Don’t know that he’d be all that interested in a high school party, but I wouldn’t mind.”

“No, he’s at another party,” Sam said. He and Cas headed in, but Sam stopped and turned back. “Wait a minute. Jess, do you have a crush on my brother?”

“Maybe? Sam, I get how you could miss it, but Cas, you’ve gotta have my back on this. Dean is seriously hot, right?” Jess grinned, leaning forward and lowering her voice. “Not really, he’s way too old for me. But can’t you just see the look on my mom’s face if I let her think I do?”

“Oh god.” Sam fought off the mental images of Jess and Dean that were threatening to overwhelm his brain. “Jess, you’re evil.”

“Dean is attractive, I suppose,” Castiel said. “Not my type, but looking at him objectively, yes, he is an attractive man.”

Sam let out a big, dramatic sigh. “And here I thought I’d finally found something I didn’t have to share with my big brother.”

Jess looked between them nervously, but relaxed when Cas smiled. “You two are terrible!”

“It’s Halloween. Isn’t it supposed to be a night for scaring people?” Sam ducked the smack Jess directed at him as she headed for the door, where the bell had just rung. Sam and Cas headed on in. “Check it out, Dracula!” Sam pointed at the TV. “Complete bullshit on the lore, but it’s a great movie.”

Jess’s mother mostly stayed out of the way of the high school party, only coming down to the basement where most of the games were being played to deliver more food and check to make sure no one had spiked the punch. One time, either by bad luck or because a Winchester had angered some kind of luck god, she came down just as Sam obeyed the spinning bottle and pulled Cas in for a kiss. The disapproving noise stopped him cold.

“Oh my god, I am so sorry,” Jess said when her mom went back upstairs. “Go ahead, Sam. No one else is going to complain.”

“Moment’s kinda broken,” one of the other boys said. “No one’s gonna want to play when your mom might catch them and be rude about it.”

“Yeah, I know,” Jess said, coloring a little. “It’s not the game, it’s that she hates Cas, but still. Once again, I am so, so sorry about that.”

The rest of the evening went well, and most people had forgotten about the aborted spin-the-bottle game by the time the party broke up. Jess walked out to the Impala with Sam and Cas. “I’m really sorry.”

“Forget about it, it was kind of funny,” Sam said. “I just can’t believe… what were the chances that the bottle would actually land on Cas, out of everyone playing, and then that would be when your mom brought the cookies down?”

Jess laughed. “I know, right? That was… thanks for coming, both of you, and I hope you’ll at least consider coming if I have another party this year.”

“Should we call Dean?” Cas asked as he drove away.

“Nah. It’s Friday, his night to hook up and our night to ourselves. Stargazing?”

“Of course. You know, I’ve never been stargazing on Halloween?” Cas said. “It’s such a good night for it.”


	3. November 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean and Sam call John. Things get a little maudlin.

Dean picked up the phone. He didn’t dial right away, staring at the phone. He looked up at Sam. “He probably wouldn’t notice if we didn’t call.”

“We would.” Sam stared at the phone. “Come on, just dial. The longer we wait, the more likely he’ll be drunk enough to say something we’ll all regret.”

“Again.” Still, Dean hesitated. “You sure about this?”

Sam rolled his eyes. “Dean, half the time he thinks today’s my birthday. He just might think that and call us later, if we don’t call him first. I don’t think he’d get so drunk that he’d forget he talked to us.”

“I dunno, man, this is the first time he’s ever not had someone watching him,” Dean said. “I’m just… I should’ve tracked him down. Shouldn’t let him be alone today.”

Cas reached out and squeezed Dean’s hand. “You have every right to take care of yourself first. John would probably tell you the same thing.”

“Yeah, I know he would. Because he did, when I talked to him a couple weeks ago,” Dean said. He dialed a few numbers, hesitating over the last one. Sam nodded to him. Dean hit the four.

“Dean, if you’re callin’ to find out where to meet up with me, I am going to kick your ass. You should be with Sammy.” John’s voice barely sounded drunk at all.

“I am with Sam, Dad,” Dean said. “I just… we wanted to check in with you, make sure…”

“I’m fine, Dean,” John said. “I swear, I’m not sitting in a hotel room with Jim, Jack, and Jose.”

Dean and Sam exchanged skeptical glances. Sam leaned toward the phone. “Hi, Dad. We know you’re not fine. Not today. But we wanted to call and remind you that you’re not alone and we love you, even if we can’t be with you today.”

For a while, there was silence on the line. Then John said, “I mean it, boys. I’m not sitting alone in a hotel room with too much booze and no one to keep me from drinking until I die. I’m in Maryland. Holed up in Caleb’s bunker. Gotta go through him to get to the alcohol. He’s already taken a couple swings at me when he found out what happened last year.”

“Good to know,” Dean said. “Dad, you know not to call us later, right?”

“Already told Caleb to make me hand over my phone, I stop being able to answer his questions correctly,” John said. “I’ll call you tomorrow, once the hangover’s gone, let you know I made it through another anniversary.”

“Good,” Sam said. “And Dad? One more time: I know you didn’t mean any of what you were saying last year, so don’t worry about it. Okay? Even with all the changes, you’re still my dad, and that means something.”

“Thanks, son. Is Cas there?”

“Yes, sir,” Cas said. “Sam told me what happened, and why.”

“Good. You needed to know.” John cleared his throat. “Sammy doesn’t remember his mother, but Dean does. Dean’s gonna need you today. Don’t let him blow it off and say he’s fine, he’s got this. He doesn’t. I’m trusting you to take care of both my boys for me. Can you do that?”

Dean rolled his eyes, but Castiel nodded. “Yes, sir. I’ve got this. Don’t worry about your sons.”

“Thank you, Cas. This is putting a lot on you. Probably too much. More than I’d ever ask of someone who wasn’t family. Make sure my boys take care of you, too,” John said.

Cas laughed. “Sir, the best way to make Dean feel better is to find a way to let him look after me or Sam. He’s already beating himself up for not being there for you.”

“Dean, we talked about this,” John said.

“I know, sir. Doesn’t make it right, Caleb having to look after you instead of me,” Dean said.

“Do me a world more good making sure you’re there, keeping me from lashing out at Sammy again, than it would be to have you here. Caleb’s tough. Doesn’t hurt him a bit to tell me I’m too drunk for another drink and take a swing at me if he needs to. I should never have put it on you to keep me from drinking myself to death. I’m your father, not the other way around.”

“Dad…” Dean tried to interrupt.

“No, let me say this while I can. You and Sammy, I made a hell of a lot of mistakes. This life, this ain’t what Mary would wanted for you, either of you. I just need you to know that everything I did, I did because it was the best I could do for you. Another man might’ve done better, but no one could’ve tried harder. I’m sorry for all the ways I’ve screwed up with you two. Just hope that you can forgive me and know that I did it out of love.”

“We know, Dad,” Sam said. “Dad, you and me, we’ve had some really epic fights. Probably have more. Stuck Dean in the middle way too many times to count. But you’re still my dad.”

“Everyone makes mistakes raising their kids,” Dean said.

Cas cleared his throat. “Sir? If I can offer some perspective… you’ve made mistakes. But you’ve never turned your back on your sons or made them feel like you would. No one’s perfect, but you try, and you’ve never failed in the most important duty of a father.”

Once again, there was a long silence. “I needed to hear that, Cas. And I appreciate it.”

“Okay. Dad, if I haven’t heard from you by the end of tomorrow, I’m driving out to Maryland and kicking both your ass and Caleb’s,” Dean said. “Pass that along, would you?”

“Will do. Good-bye, boys.” The phone clicked off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not usually like me to be pro-John. I kind of hate the guy, because of the Stanford thing. But he did always try his best.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are the best. I love them.


End file.
